This is a lovely walk through the charming village of Harrow-on-the-Hill, home of the famous Harrow School and much more. Although Harrow is some way from the centre of London, it is easy to reach. The best way is to buy an off-peak Travelcard covering zones 1 - 6. Take the Jubilee Line northbound to Finchley Road. Here cross the same platform and take a Metropolitan Line to Harrow-on-the-Hill. The quickest is a fast Amersham service, but any Metropolitan Line train will do: the Metropolitan LIine takes the same route as the Jubilee Line, but bypasses most of the stations where Jubilee Line trains stop. On reaching Harrow-on-the-Hill, climb the stairs from the platform and turn left. Exit the station through the south exit leading to Lowlands Road. This is a short walk of less than 2 miles. It's more of a stroll but there are some hills to climb and descend at the end. You are rewarded with fine views over London to the north east and the west. Harrow-on-the-Hill is all about Harrow School - second only to Eton College in prestige amongst English public schools. It was founded in the late 16th/early 17th century. The school does not provide all the history on this walk however. We pass the site of the first fatal motor vehicle accident which occurred in 1899. We see where King Charles I watered his horses at a well, and wistfully looked back over London before riding north to surrender himself to the Scottish army. We enter the lovely old church of St Mary. Originally consecrated in the 11th century by St Anselm, the present building has some wonderful effigies, 14th and 15th century brasses, and is the burial place of the founder of Harrow School John Lyon and his wife. Somewhere in the grounds of the church, Lord Byron's daughter Allegra is buried. All that remains is a commemorative stone by the main doorway, but nearby is a plaque by the Peachy gravestone where the young Byron as a schoolboy spent hours under the trees, gazing into the distance, and developing his muse.
